In the blink of an eye, the tranquil valley had transformed into a unique amethyst crystal mine.
The Amethyst Winged Lion King, now encased in a layer of purple crystals, absorbed the scorching violet light radiating from the sky. The crystals on its body unleashed a terrifying devouring force, voraciously consuming the radiant energy.
As the mystical purple light entered its body, the lion felt as if it had swallowed some miraculous pill—its blood boiling, its innate Purple Flame burning fiercer than ever, as if fueled by some extraordinary substance.
Within moments, the Amethyst Winged Lion King sensed its Beast Flame had doubled in intensity.
Half of its combat prowess relied on this flame, and now that its power had surged, its overall strength naturally followed suit.
Such immense benefits made the lion forget the pressure weighing upon it, quietly absorbing the divine purple radiance.
Yet no matter how vast the energy, it would eventually dissipate.
Xiao Yan, seated cross-legged, suddenly opened his eyes and stood up. A formidable aura shot into the sky like an arrow, piercing through the heavens.
A fierce gale swept through the valley, swirling the purple-stained clouds as the vast expanse of violet light rapidly receded, revealing the azure sky once more.
With his hands behind his back, Xiao Yan sorted through his insights, feeling an indescribable exhilaration.
The Purple Evolution Refining Extreme technique and its accompanying Dou Skills represented the pinnacle fusion of his forging methods, cultivation techniques, and combat arts—the strongest set of cultivation scriptures he had ever conceived.
Through this enlightenment, Xiao Yan had also gained new realizations about his own cultivation path.
The Flame Mantra and its derived techniques were inextricably linked to Heavenly Flames.
Initially, the advancement of his technique relied entirely on absorbing new Heavenly Flames, making it impossible for him to elevate it to an extreme tier in one go, unlike other self-created techniques.
Only when a new Heavenly Flame appeared within him, or when he reached a certain cultivation threshold, could he use the flames and his insights to push the technique to greater heights.
As he delved deeper, Xiao Yan began to understand something new—cultivation techniques shouldn't just focus on vertical progression (speed and efficiency) but should also expand horizontally, refining one's energy in ways similar to the Purple Evolution Refining Extreme.
Lost in thought, Xiao Yan's sharp gaze suddenly snapped toward the distance—a familiar presence had entered his perception.
"Yun Yun is back."
A flicker of excitement surged within him. If she had brought a Beast Flame, the Spiritfire of Ten Thousand Beasts could finally break into the Heavenly Flame Ranking.
A cyan silhouette streaked across the sky, gracefully landing in the valley.
Clad in a pristine white dress, Yun Yun's long, silken hair was adorned with an elegant phoenix hairpin, exuding an air of nobility that was impossible to ignore.
Her serene beauty resembled a clear spring nestled within secluded mountains—commanding reverence yet stirring an irresistible allure.
Xiao Yan strode forward and grasped her delicate, jade-like hand. "Yun Zhi, you're finally back! I've missed you terribly!"
Though Yun Yun had imagined their reunion countless times in her mind, she had never anticipated such fervent enthusiasm.
Her graceful figure stiffened momentarily, as if frozen by the wind. Her dress fluttered like a blooming white begonia—noble and pure, accentuating her breathtaking beauty.
Embarrassed by her own reaction, she coldly retorted, "You missed me? Why? Did you truly miss me?"
Xiao Yan faltered. How was he supposed to answer that?
Realizing he was pushing his luck, Yun Yun withdrew her hand and retrieved an exquisite jade box from her sleeve. "Was it for this Beast Flame?"
"Of course not!" Xiao Yan denied instantly—even as he shamelessly accepted the box.
With his extraordinary soul perception, he could sense the scorching heat emanating from the flame inside. Among sixth-tier Beast Flames, this was undoubtedly a high-quality specimen.
The forced composure on Yun Yun's face crumbled the moment she saw Xiao Yan's radiant smile. Sighing, she glanced around in bewilderment. "What happened here in the Warcraft Mountains earlier?"
"And these amethyst crystals…" She marveled at the valley, now resembling a luxurious crystal mine.
Xiao Yan chuckled. "I noticed you seemed fond of the Amethyst Winged Lion King's crystal cave, so I had some moved here. After all, we'll be staying for another two or three months."
Yun Yun's heart fluttered at the thought that he had paid attention to such details—but the latter part of his statement sent a blush creeping back onto her cheeks, her heartbeat accelerating once more.
The Amethyst Winged Lion King stared blankly at Xiao Yan. What did any of this have to do with me?
Noticing its gaze, Xiao Yan strode over with a grin. "You've done well. Coincidentally, I have a set of cultivation techniques and Dou Skills tailored for magical beasts."
"Cultivation techniques… for magical beasts?" Yun Yun's expression shifted dramatically. "Before achieving human form, how could a magical beast possibly cultivate such things?!"
The Amethyst Winged Lion King also gaped in disbelief. Was this real?
Without further ado, Xiao Yan leaped onto the lion's back and pressed a palm against its forehead, transmitting the Purple Evolution Refining Extreme directly into its mind.
A flood of information surged in, making the lion's head throb painfully. Its entire body trembled uncontrollably.
After what felt like an eternity, the Amethyst Winged Lion King finally assimilated the knowledge and tentatively activated the technique.
The moment the Purple Evolution Refining Extreme began circulating, the heaven and earth energy within a radius of several dozen zhang erupted into violent turbulence, as if boiling.
Under Yun Yun's stunned gaze, vast streams of tangible energy poured into the lion's body like a raging torrent.
The amethyst crystals covering its body blazed with radiant light, rapidly absorbing and refining the energy.
Moreover, with each cycle of the technique, the lion could feel its Dou Qi and innate Beast Flame being purified.
"What tier is this technique?!" Yun Yun shielded herself from the howling energy storm, her mind reeling.
The sheer scale of heaven and earth energy being drawn far surpassed even the top-tier cultivation methods of the Yunlan Sect—by at least a hundredfold.
Sensing the strengthening of the lion's Purple Flame, Xiao Yan nodded in satisfaction. More than cultivation speed, he valued the refinement of innate potential.
Ordinary techniques, no matter how fast they allowed one to progress, merely hastened the journey to one's natural bottleneck. Once that limit was reached, further advancement became nearly impossible.
A prime example was the Little Fairy Doctor's Disaster Poison Body and Medusa's early-to-mid-stage strength. Though comparable initially, by the late stages—especially at the Dou Saint level—the Little Fairy Doctor's potential had been nearly exhausted.
Meanwhile, Medusa's bloodline evolution into the Nine-Colored Heaven Devouring Python had skyrocketed her potential, allowing her to become one of the Five Great Emperors first.
Thus, given sufficient resources, one's innate aptitude almost solely determined their ultimate ceiling.
"Yun Zhi, take some time to familiarize yourself with the crystal valley. I need to cultivate as well."
Leaping down from the lion's back, Xiao Yan headed toward his cave with the jade box in hand.
Yun Yun's gaze lingered on his retreating figure, her eyes slightly dazed. "Perhaps his achievements at such a young age aren't just due to resources… but also his relentless diligence."
Inside the cave, Xiao Yan deployed six puppets as guards before settling into meditation.
With a flick of his wrist, he produced the Super Purple Flame Pill and opened the jade box.
"Spiritfire of Ten Thousand Beasts… begin condensation!"
Flames enveloped his palm as he lifted the azure Beast Flame from the box and swallowed it along with the pill.
Any ordinary alchemist witnessing this would have deemed it suicide.
A sixth-tier Beast Flame was immensely powerful—without proper preparation, it would severely damage one's meridians.
But Xiao Yan's body housed four supreme Heavenly Flames, each capable of dominating the Beast Flame like an ancestor disciplining a disobedient descendant.
Thus, the moment the two Beast Flames entered his body, they were immediately surrounded by these four ancestors and obediently escorted into his Naling Space.
The existing Beast Flames within crowded around the newcomers: "Welcome, little brothers."
Despite its high tier, the sixth-tier Beast Flame quickly submitted under the pressure of dozens of others.
Xiao Yan had long planned the condensation process for the Spiritfire of Ten Thousand Beasts.
Among all Heavenly Flames, this was undoubtedly the most straightforward—requiring only an abundance of Beast Flames.
Of course, gathering ten thousand was excessive.
Not all Beast Flames were equal. Sometimes, a single high-quality flame could rival hundreds of mediocre ones.
With both flames now in the Naling Space, Xiao Yan's hands blurred into motion, forming seals at blinding speed until they became nothing but a dazzling afterimage.
Focusing his mind, he exerted his formidable soul power—Mortal Realm Advanced—to compress the nearly hundred Beast Flames.
Under this pressure, the weaker flames were forcibly merged into the higher-tier ones, reducing the collective volume by twenty to thirty percent in moments.
With a thought, Xiao Yan enveloped the remaining flames in a barrier of Heavenly Flame energy, preventing violent backlash.
Through relentless compression and containment, the Beast Flames visibly fused, their colors purifying into a brilliant crimson glow that illuminated the entire space. Bestial roars echoed as the embryonic Spiritfire of Ten Thousand Beasts took form.
Thanks to Xiao Yan's exhaustive resource gathering—drawing from the rare Beast Flames of two entire empires—the newborn Heavenly Flame erupted with a terrifying wave of fire and deafening howls, forcing even the surrounding Heavenly Flames to retreat momentarily.
For the first time, Xiao Yan was using a Heavenly Flame powerful enough to rank on the Heavenly Flame Ranking to evolve his technique.
(End of Chapter)
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